Hunting Chaparral

[TXFireFighter]

Need help from the TBH braintrust. My group got drawn for the Chap gun hunt! I need to know what compartments to ask for? To those that have hunted the Chap, can you please suggest which pastures are best and why. We were told to email in our top 3 pastures we would want to hunt. They will use the info to assign us a pasture according to our hunt draw selection order. Thanks in advance!

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[Jon B]

No help but ready for the live thread.

[TXFireFighter]

No help but ready for the live thread.

Absolutely that's the plan! Btw since I'm sure it will be asked, we drew with 12 pref points. We will be there Dec 12-16. Can't wait!

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[OleTomTalker]

Me and bowhuntercoach be there with our boys week after Christmas. In for following along on you scouting for us.

[Ranch_Dog]

Compartment selection is given by the order in which you (or your group) were drawn. Plus, your group size will dictate where you fit.



In 2014, I was drawn as a single hunter, the last hunter drawn. I ended up being given the Baldy pasture out on the west end. It was a 640-acre high fenced pasture out on its own. Couldn't have been happier!

[TXFireFighter]

Compartment selection is given by the order in which you (or your group) were drawn. Plus, your group size will dictate where you fit.







In 2014, I was drawn as a single hunter, the last hunter drawn. I ended up being given the Baldy pasture out on the west end. It was a 640-acre high fenced pasture out on its own. Couldn't have been happier!

Nice! How was your hunt? What did you see? Yes that's what the email states, compartments will be given according to order selected. They are however asking for 3 compartments we would prefer. We just don't know enough about the Chap to select good compartments.

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[TXFireFighter]

Here are the compartments we were sent

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[Huntindad]

Baldy & Mare have been off limits last few years or so. as well as southern part of Mustang & Long.

Other than Ano Nuevo, they're all good pastures...just some more gooder than others

[Huntindad]

Wow, they closed off alot of the ranch. They told me they probably will not have stand by positions this year.

[jmoore]

Got a similar email Monday. I'll be there 11/29-12/2 on the first bow hunt. 2 of the 3 I requested are green on your map and the other is 10. I rifle hunted 8 and my sons drew 9 on the youth hunt two years ago and they are very thick off the senderos.

[TXFireFighter]

Feel free to send me a PM if you'd rather. Thanks

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[WinslowBoy]

A few less compartments this year. Just compared it to the compartment map I had from 2 years ago for the gun hunt. There were 17 total compartments. #1 was broken into 2 compartments. AND #10 and #11 were actually 6 DIFFERENT COMPARTMENTS. Maybe had more "single" hunters the year I was there and therefore broke it into smaller compartments. If I remember, the total number of gun permits has stayed the same though.

[sqiggy]

Can’t go wrong with north Jay. Has a good size tank on it. I hunted it back in 18 I believe. Had 2 shooters on cam and saw 2 shooters, one while on stand and one that crossed the road in front of me when I was headed to the east side. I only hunted the north half. During the archery hunt, they split that pasture in half, so I really don’t know what the south side looks like.

[Ranch_Dog]

Nice! How was your hunt? What did you see?

This was a rifle hunt in 2014. I had received an email stating that if I participated in a hunter rifle accuracy research, I would have a day of scouting in addition to the hunt. It was simple; check-in, shoot three rounds at a target and start scouting. The WMA manager told me I would be last but to scout two pastures; Blady and Headquarters. He said there was a single hunter ahead of me in the selection and to look at both. It was a bit of a drive back to Baldy, which didn't both me at all, and the single hunter ahead of me took the Headquarters.

During my time with the manager, he talked about the WMA and how he wished hunters would target the older deer. When he briefed me on the unit after selection, I asked him what he would like me to kill. He said, a 7½-year-old and told me the area to find him would be below Baldy. He showed me some survey pictures, and off I went.

I sat in a well-concealed popup for three days, saw some fine bucks, and at about 3:30 in the afternoon, the buck came to some doe-n-heat scent. I've killed some large WT; however, having one buck in mind on a public hunt made the hunt!



What's weird is that I was also picked for the Elephant Mountain mule deer hunt the same year I retired. It happened a month before the Chap hunt. The WMA manager said the same, "please don't kill young bucks." So, I asked him what would be a candidate in my unit. He said a 7½-year-old that they tried to get during the youth hunt. I said, "Ok", and he said, "he's Wiley!" Me, "Ok."

He wasn't kidding; I finally found him on the last day of the hunt, thanks to the FBI!



It was a good year, two 7½-year-old public bucks!

Back to the Chap, information to consider. I was the only one in Baldy, so I set up three popups, and in that, I hunted all day; I would move between them after 2 ~ 3 hours in one. The manager had suggested I set up about 225 ~ 250 yards downwind of the permanent blinds and forget the corn. I lost count of how many bucks I saw sticking their necks out of the brush at about 200-yards, focusing on the blinds in the distance. I had one opportunity and a very good 5 ~ 6 YO, but I was more interested in the one the manager had pointed out.

[TXFireFighter]

This was a rifle hunt in 2014. I had received an email stating that if I participated in a hunter rifle accuracy research, I would have a day of scouting in addition to the hunt. It was simple; check-in, shoot three rounds at a target and start scouting. The WMA manager told me I would be last but to scout two pastures; Blady and Headquarters. He said there was a single hunter ahead of me in the selection and to look at both. It was a bit of a drive back to Baldy, which didn't both me at all, and the single hunter ahead of me took the Headquarters.



During my time with the manager, he talked about the WMA and how he wished hunters would target the older deer. When he briefed me on the unit after selection, I asked him what he would like me to kill. He said, a 7½-year-old and told me the area to find him would be below Baldy. He showed me some survey pictures, and off I went.



I sat in a well-concealed popup for three days, saw some fine bucks, and at about 3:30 in the afternoon, the buck came to some doe-n-heat scent. I've killed some large WT; however, having one buck in mind on a public hunt made the hunt!







What's weird is that I was also picked for the Elephant Mountain mule deer hunt the same year I retired. It happened a month before the Chap hunt. The WMA manager said the same, "please don't kill young bucks." So, I asked him what would be a candidate in my unit. He said a 7½-year-old that they tried to get during the youth hunt. I said, "Ok", and he said, "he's Wiley!" Me, "Ok."



He wasn't kidding; I finally found him on the last day of the hunt, thanks to the FBI!







It was a good year, two 7½-year-old public bucks!



Back to the Chap, information to consider. I was the only one in Baldy, so I set up three popups, and in that, I hunted all day; I would move between them after 2 ~ 3 hours in one. The manager had suggested I set up about 225 ~ 250 yards downwind of the permanent blinds and forget the corn. I lost count of how many bucks I saw sticking their necks out of the brush at about 200-yards, focusing on the blinds in the distance. I had one opportunity and a very good 5 ~ 6 YO, but I was more interested in the one the manager had pointed out.

Great write up and congratulations on getting it done! Great old bruiser bucks! I appreciate the info.

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